40 Weeks and 40 Pounds to Fabulous at 40

In 40 weeks, I turn 40. I told myself two years ago, after giving birth to my third and final baby (I have a fourth in heaven), that I would have my groove back and be in the best shape I have been since college by the time I turned 40.

Well, my deadline is 40 weeks away, and I have 40 lbs to lose! I figured, I'd better make this public.

I have put my faith in a few fad diets over the past two years, most recently losing and regaining 20lbs four times with the HCG diet (which has you taking drops of HCG while eating 500 calories a day.) The real restrictive diets don't work for me cause when I go off the diet, I go nuts in opposite direction.Hello ice cream!

I also know that I lose weight best when I eat mostly fruits, vegetables and lean dairy and protein and layoff carbs and sugars.(you know, the good stuff)

Taking all that into consideration--as well as my busy lifestyle, working full time, traveling some for work and raising three kids--I need a flexible food plan.

So, I decided to return to Weight Watchers. I am a lifetime member of Weight Watchers. I first joined when I was in the 7th grade and was a member throughout high school, college and into early adulthood. I haven't been to a meeting since 2006 and after seeing a colleague have success with the new 360 program, I decided to return to a sensible lifestyle based on real food with nothing that is off limits.

Everything is permitted but not everything is beneficial.

Being fabulous at 40 isn't only about losing 40 lbs (although it is a big part of it for me). It is about being my best self physically and spiritually. So in addition to the diet plan, I am planning on committing to an exercise regime that will help me tone up my almost 40 year-old, post three-baby body. This fitness plan will include a combination of the Insanity workout, Zumba, yoga and the treadmill. Finally, I am focusing on fashion. I want to identify a go to wardrobe for work and play that really defines my style (and does not say frumpy mom). I want a stylish hairdo, whiter teeth and a make up pallete that brightens my smile.

On the spiritual side of things, I'm reading my Bible daily, spending time in prayer each day alone and with my family and teaching the Word to my kids. I also have a solid list of Christian books to read this year from fiction to books about motherhood and everything in between.

I can't wait to see where God leads me this year as I embark on my journey to be fabulously me at forty!

Here's to the next 40 weeks!

Take a break It is okay. Really!

As moms we face guilt over so many issues. Perhaps the number one issue work out of the home moms are criticized for is spending time away from their kids when they aren't at work. After all, we are out of the home at least 40 hours a week at work and only have a few hours a day during the week to be with them, nurture them, train them. Shouldn't every evening and weekend be devoted to them to make up for lost time?

This is a terrible pressure to put on ourselves or other mothers. True, our children need us but they also need our best selves. As Sally Clarkson advises in her new book Desperate, "we all need a break or we will break."

"Day in and day out we give to our children, and it’s a privilege to do so. I’m thankful for the opportunity to pour into my children, but when we choose to give the best of ourselves to them, we will need a break, or we will break. We’ll get desperate," advises Sally.

So, it is okay to meet a friend after work every once in a while, or to get your nails done without kids in tow or even to spend a whole weekend rejuvenating. That is why I look forward to the two times a year I head to the mountains to a place called the Scrapbook Cabin. There, I meet with kindred spirits for a weekend that nurtures my spirit. I return rested, revived and a better mom, wife and colleague. So don't claim the guilt. God ordained rest. He gave us the sabbath, he exemplified it by going to the mountain to pray, he knew he had precious little time on earth with his flock, yet he took time alone to rest, prepare, reflect. It is important and necessary.

My break comes in two weeks! I'll be headed to the cabin and I am in much anticipation. After a long fall, filled with work travel, the move, the holidays, unpacking, and more, a weekend full of creativity and laughter and support from other women is just what my soul needs!

How do you catch a break?

Cultivating Souls

Earlier this week, I wrote about a new book Desperate which has really touched my heart. The past month, I have found myself struggling internally between stopping to engage with and enjoy my kids as they explored their new environment, made artwork or played a make believe game, when I really needed to unpack and get our new home set up. Sarah Mae's quote really hit the nail on the head of this internal battle of mine.

"Choosing to enter into the mundane with our children, who see playing ponies as anything but ordinary, is a sacrifice of love. Choosing to enter into a project that will probably turn into a training session is also a sacrifice of love. We will have to choose patience and kindness over frustration and giving up. We’ll have to choose to take time to train and teach and perhaps discipline. The choosing to engage means choosing to do the hard work of loving through our actions.

It means taking the time to cultivate the souls of our children. Cultivating has much to do with playing ponies, doing crafts, getting wet socks in the snow, watching a movie when you have something else you want to do, staying in their bedrooms a little longer even though you’re exhausted . . . I believe these acts of love and sacrifice pay off in a child’s heart. Because it shows them we care, and we want to be a part of their worlds. I think it also shows them the Father’s love."

My goal is to harvest a memorable and meaningful life for our family. In order to reap that harvest, I need to embrace those moments for interaction and training as they become available regardless of the "work" at hand. While stopping what I am doing to play a matching game or color is not always possible, I need to be acutely aware that these opportunities are exactly how God wants me to earn their hearts and to train their souls for Him.

A clean, organized home is important but not more so than a confident, loved, listened to child.

Do you struggle with the decision to get things done or stop and engage with your child when you hear "Mommy will you play with me?"

Making Margin for God

I am joining a link up of my friend, and Bible teacher, Joanne Ellison to help focus myself on making space for God in this new year. This week, Joanne discussed making margin in our mornings for God and gave three tips: 1. Greet God each morning upon awaking 2. Offer him your day. "Here is my calendar. Have it your way" 3. Pray that your eyes and ears will be open to hear His voice during your day. 

I can certainly make time to greet God, let him know I want to hear from him today and that my plans bend to His ultimate plans for my day.

I am also making space for God by dedicating some time each day to Bible reading. I got off track last year and hope to be more disciplined about my scripture reading and devotion time. I use the Gateway Bible App on my ipad and have chosen a one year reading plan that follows the structure of the canon.

Another goal I had last year was to read the Bible and Bible stories to my children. I have found The Story to be an excellent way to share God's word with my kids and there is a version for every age group. I will set aside a time for family devotion so we can be on the journey together.

Finally, I am committed to family prayer at meal time. Meal-time prayer is a practice we have never done consistently and which neither of us were used to doing growing up, except at "special" dinners. My four year old has spontaneously asked for us to pray at meals this week, especially for Grandma and Hogan. I think that is the spirit urging me to pay attention to discipleship at home and to developing a family devotion to our Lord.





What about you? How are you making space for God in your mornings?

Desperate for A Season

Desperate. A word a Type A, working mom who appears to have it all together doesn't use often but secretly screams inside. "I'm desperate for some help. For someone to really understand."

We have been going through a tough season filled with financial struggles, loss of loved ones, school challenges, a move, the holidays, etc. We have received many blessings during this time, but sometimes the load was almost too much to bear.

Over the holidays, we packed up and moved across town to a lovely home that was not quite ready (as in no working oven, no laundry room floor, one bedroom still needing walls and a brand new kitchen cabinet paint job that was literally peeling off and needs redoing) and we lost grandma and our family pet. The kids are preparing to change schools and in many ways we are starting over. Desperate is a feeling I have had a few times these last months.

Desperate to lay the right foundations, make right decisions, get through the move, get settled, experience Christmas, lose weight...

Guilty for working night and day on the move and missing precious time to just be with the kids while I have time off my real work (which ended today).

Guilty for getting frustrated by bickering and constant chatter and chaos that I sometime wished I was in the quiet confines of my office in a Buckhead high rise instead of the box-cluttered walls of my new home.

So that is why, in the few quiet moments I have had, I have been reading Desperate Hope for the Mom Who Needs to Breathe by Sara Mae and Sally Clarkson (both of whom I had the honor of meeting at Allume in October). When I learned about this book project and the topic, I was drawn to sign up for an advance reviewer copy. I am so happy I did because the wise words of Sally and the raw honesty of Sarah Mae have helped get me through this trying time.

These Godly ladies take the rose colored glasses off of "motherhood" and affirm how life-altering, challenging and sometimes downright desperate it can be. They are encouraging a movement of women to come alongside one another to support each other in the real and sometimes raw vocation of Motherhood.  Urging moms, both new to the job and more seasoned, to come alongside one another to encourage and HELP, both with words and physical actions. {Check out the “No More Desperate Moms Resolution” right here.}

This gem is available for all of you to read right now! Today!

This launch week for Desperate holds lots of exciting things in store for you…

Special Promotion from DaySpring

DaySpring has a special one-day offer for all of you who purchase Desperate through their site! When you buy the book from DaySpring on Monday, January 7th ONLY, you will get a free journal from them! You must purchase the book from DaySpring to receive the journal. The journal gift is good for Monday the 7th only.

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The following special gifts are for those purchasing books for small groups! You can purchase the book on Amazonand Barnes & Noble, as well as DaySpring as mentioned above. Instructions for receiving the free gifts follows the list!

*Purchase five books during launch week (with the goal of leading a small group) and receive:

• Free custom print from Red Letter Words (400 available).
• Free “Mother’s Love” art print.
• Desperate, a DVD Companion study.

*Purchase eight books during launch week (with the goal of leading a small group) and receive:

• Free custom print from Red Letter Words (400 available).
• Free “Mother’s Love” art print.
• Free custom Vintage Pearl necklace (50 available)
• Desperate, a DVD Companion study.

**For more details on receiving your free gifts, along with a TON of launch week giveaways {including a spa weekend with Sarah Mae and Sally!!!}, visit this post on the Desperate Mom site!

What about you? Have you felt desperate in your walk as a mother? Who do you turn to? Whom have you helped?